Angel Wings
by Maerd7733SCAIP
Summary: Every year for the past ten years, Isabella has been the angel on top of the Christmas tree. That's the way it has been and the way it should be. So she's not exactly pleased when the Humans receive a new angel as a gift. P/I, F/OC
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Just tryin' to get in the Christmassy mood. This is going to be a very short story, maybe three or four chapters long. Enjoy!**

Chapter One

The tradition was the same, every year. For most of the year, she would be carefully wrapped away in her own private box, shut away in the cool darkness, where the mice wouldn't be able to reach her. She lay in her frozen state, conserving her energy as she listened to the complaining voices of the other ornaments. The most movement she did was rolling her blue eyes as the others jabbered away.

And then there would be noise.

Not from the ornaments, you must understand, but from the Humans. The little children would scamper into the basement, the Mother following more slowly. They would bring the boxes up and she would always be the first one taken out, gently cleaned and set on the table to oversee the decoration process. The lights were always wrapped around the tree first, and then the baubles were put on. The other figurines would be placed on next-the glass rocking horse, the lace angels, the plastic snowflakes, the wooden Santa Clauses. Then she would be place on the very top. Last but not least, the four nutcrackers would be placed in a ring around her, presumably to protect her.

One was rather pale, with short brown hair and brown eyes, wide in girth and dressed almost completely in black. He was always placed with his back to hers. When he was Awake, he had a deep, rough voice with a brash manner of speaking. However, he was very loyal to her and very focused on his job.

On her right side would be the smallest nutcracker, delicately carved, with dark skin and curly black hair. He had a strange accent when he was Awake, and the Black Nutcracker often teased him mercilessly. However, he was a great conversationalist and very intelligent, and she enjoyed speaking to him. He was dressed in a blue and white uniform.

On her left was the quiet, intense nutcracker. He had dark blue eyes, light green hair, and a square nose, with a crisp British accent when he spoke. However, he communicated mostly with looks and gestures. He was also intelligent, although he was much more relaxed about it than the Blue Nutcracker. His uniform was purple and white, which the Black Nutcracker teased him about. He was a fierce fighter, quiet and observant. He was perseverant and brave, but kind and comforting.

And in front of her was always the Orange Nutcracker.

He and the Purple Nutcracker shared a close bond, although they hadn't even been made by the same Human. He had fiery red hair with light blue eyes and a triangular face, with a white and orange uniform. He was talkative and intelligent, amiable and a little too trusting for his own good. He was obnoxious and oblivious and a constant source of annoyance on the tree. He preferred talking to fighting. She could list a thousand reasons why she should dislike him immensely.

And yet…

He was kind and thoughtful, loyal to a fault and extremely brave. He put others before himself and he had once confessed to her that he would Break to protect her. He was quite musical, although he was no great singer. He was optimistic and intelligent and-

And she was going on one of her mental rants again.

She rolled her eyes in her box and shifted around a bit. She could smell the fresh pine on the cool breeze, as well as the sharp scent of snow. It was almost That Time, she knew-when the Little Humans (not so little now) would come with their Mother (quite a bit older now) and bring her up to oversee the decorating of the tree.

It was how the decorating of the Tree had gone for the past ten years, and it was going to be how the decorating went for the next ten years, as far as she was concerned.

She closed her eyes and shifted her wings against her back. Her Creator had been an intelligent man and had structured her wings like a bird's, with actual feathers from a dove. And unlike all those other angels, with their flimsy cloth wings that were too small for their bodies, hers were proportionate to her body and large enough to support her skirt, which probably made up at least half of her actual weight.

She knew she was a work of art; everything made by that Man was. But she also knew she was one of his plainer Creations, not like her sister, who was beautiful, even if he had painted her blind.

She smiled softly and lifted a ceramic hand to run her delicate fingers through her glossy black hair. Settling down for a rest, she had nearly fallen asleep when a terrifying thought jolted through her head.

_The Humans had received another Angel last Christmas._

**A/N: And the plot has already thickened… XD**

**I think you can guess who the Angel and the four Nutcrackers are, right? It's kinda obvious…**

**Keeping these short:**

**REVIEW!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Okay, so I wanted the updates to be quick with this one, but looks like that ain't happening. Sorry to anyone who was hoping for fast updates!**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter Two

She was beautiful.

He could see her from his place on the table. His eyes traced her slim, lithe figure, hidden beneath a silvery-blue dress. Her feathered wings were outstretched above her head, and she held a single light in her hands, which she was holding near her chest. A silver wire tiara was bent around her head, and long black hair flowed to her waist in a silky wave. A small, secret smirk covered her face, and her silvery-blue eyes simply sparkled in the low light.

He ignored how eerily similar she looked to the current Angel, and simply gazed at her beauty.

Beside him, the Orange Nutcracker gasped. "There are _two_ Angels now?" he hissed. "Which one do we stay loyal to?"

_That_ effectively brought him out of his trance.

The Black Nutcracker shrugged, dark eyes watching the New Angel intently. "It's our duty to protect the Angel of the household." He reminded them. "I think that covers _all_ of the Angels that might live in a household."

The shy Blue Nutcracker nodded his head, hesitantly agreeing. "I believe this to be the case." He said. "I could consult the Owl-?"

"NO!" the other Nutcrackers yelled in a panic; the wooden Owl that lived above the grandfather clock was crazy and creepy and never missed an opportunity to try and eat them.

The other three immediately broke out in a heated argument about the Owl-Blue was all for going to see the wizened old thing, as it held the only copy of the Rule Book in the house. However, the other two didn't want the darker-skinned Nutcracker to go see the crazed beast, as he always returned badly shaken and terrified. And in their line of work, that was never a good thing.

Using the argument as a distraction, the Orange Nutcracker slipped off their table and vaulted to the floor, racing across it to the figure no one else has seen.

The Angel.

The old one, the one who had graced the top of their tree for nearly ten years now. She was resting on the edge of the table, hands clasped in front of her, wings folded neatly behind her. Her light pink gown swirled gracefully around her bare feet, and her own wire tiara had been thrown to the side, presumably in a fit of anger. Her light blue eyes were closed, and he could sense the anger rushing through her slender frame. She stood with the grace and wisdom of the Queen she was inside. His blue eyes momentarily flickered across her beautiful face before he climbed up on the tabletop and stood respectfully behind her. "Milady?" he asked hesitantly.

She turned her head ever-so-slightly. "Yes?" she asked softly, her voice smooth and velvety.

"What are we to do about the New Angel?"

She turned around completely, blue eyes meeting with his own. "What do you mean?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

Orange tugged nervously at his collar. He'd never really had a true conversation with the Angel before; she was usually snapping at him, telling him he spoke too much or that he needed to calm down. She'd never been like this before-vulnerable and child-like. "W-Well, what course of action do you wish to take?"

Her head turned to face the New Angel. "Tell me, Phineas," she said quietly, taking him completely by surprise as she used his True Name. Frankly, he hadn't even been aware she knew his. "Am I a bad Angel? Have I done wrong in keeping vigilance over the household all these years? Have I failed in my duty somewhere?"

He vehemently shook his head. "No, Milady, of course not! How could you even think that?"

She lifted a porcelain hand and brushed a lock of black hair out of her face. "Do you think the Humans are trying to replace me?"

"No," he answered immediately. "I think they just got a new Angel and don't wish to be impolite by ignoring her existence."

She lifted her head and gazed at him thoughtfully. She closed her eyes and turned away. "It is lonely." She mused. "Sitting at the very top of the Tree, playing the Protector, knowing that no matter what you do, you do not make a difference. I feel so very small, so very insignificant, so very unimportant...I seem to be nothing more than a replaceable Ornament. I must always be cold and aloof, and I may never show just how Broken I am inside, for that would be showing weakness. It is a long and lonely road, Phineas, being the strong one, the rock of comfort. Everyone expects you to be there when they need you, but when you need a shoulder to cry on…there is no one."

Phineas knelt down and picked up the silver wire tiara off the ground. "That's not true." He said softly. "You will always have at least one person to lean on. Someone who will always care for you, to help you repair your wings...someone who will always be there for you."

"Oh?" she turned to look at him. "And who might that be?"

"Me." He said immediately, before feeling his cheeks stain.

Her eyes widened and her cheeks were suddenly flushed. A soft clinking sound came from her mouth as her hand covered it. "Phineas-" she started.

He thrust the crown into her arms. "Here," he said gruffly. And before she could say anything, he had vaulted off the table and returned to his fellow Nutcrackers.

She gazed after him for a minute before a smile suddenly spread across her face. She smoothed down her hair and replaced the tiara carefully.

It was time to meet the New Angel.

**A/N: Okay I'm not too pleased with this chapter…the ending was hell to write. But at least it's over.**

**Review for the 3****rd**** chapter!**


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